Dallas Day 1: JFK & Chicken!

Last weekend, DJ, the girls and I headed to Dallas! I had been wanting to head to St. Louis this summer, but then we decided that Dallas would be fun! It's close enough for us to make the drive, and DJ's uncle lives there,  and he was gracious enough to let us invade his house! We woke up Saturday morning and made the 4 hour trip. 

DJ's uncle had a meeting that afternoon, so we timed our arrival with the time his meeting ended and we met at Dealey Plaza

Gretchen has really enjoyed learning about our presidents, and DJ enjoys the history of President Kennedy. I was thankful that we were able to expose the girls to history, but I was also saddened since President Kennedy was assassinated. It was surreal being in the same location and thinking about how I would have reacted in that day and time. I just can't imagine. 

An "x" marks the spot where President Kennedy was killed, and I couldn't believe the amount of people heading out to stand on the 'x' and take a picture. The roads are not closed off and cars were coming, and I could just envision someone getting hit. It just wasn't smart. 

Looking up at the Sixth Floor Museum, which is located in the Dallas County Administration Building. 

And then looking back down to the tunnels where his car sped away after he had been shot. 

The grassy knoll. 

We stopped and read the plaques to the girls so they could appreciate the history a little more. 

And they explored the grassy knoll. I just kept thinking about how many people were there that day and saw the tragedy. 

As we were walking back up to the Sixth Floor Museum, DJ's uncle pointed out that this building was in the TV show Dallas. 

When we were in the museum, we were not allowed to take photos on the 6th floor. We purchased our tickets in advance, and we selected the 3:00 time slot. This gave us time to walk around outside before visiting, but we still had to stand in line for a while before we went in to the museum. Megan and Adalyn got in free, and the rest of us were given headsets to wear. I could have gotten headsets for Megan, but I didn't think she would want them. It turns out that she did and I gave her mine. We left our stroller at home, so we had to hold Adalyn in the museum or chase her around. Needless to say, I was able to enjoy about 1/4 of the museum before she lost interest. Gretchen, DJ, and his uncle soaked up the information, and Megan was attentive during the first half. 

We were able to see the window where Oswald shot from, but it's all glassed off, so you can't actually stand there. We were also able to watch the funeral procession on a screen and I just kept imagining myself being there in that day and time. 

When we finished with the 6th floor, mostly because the little girls had lost interest, we were able to go the 7th floor and look out those windows. 

And we were able to take pictures. These pictures are made of tiny photographs of JFK. 

The 7th floor walked you through voting and was very wide open. I'm assuming they use this space for party and event rentals. 

After we toured the 7th floor, the girls and I went downstairs to wait on the rest of our crew. 

Us, outside of the administration building. 

We left downtown Dallas and drove to Frisco, where DJ's uncle lives. 

He suggested dinner at Babe's Chicken. 

They had a super fun waiting area, and thanks to some fans, shade, and misters, it wasn't too hot while we sat outside and waited for a table. 

The girls loved the fun chairs! 

Babe's Chicken serves chicken- fried, chicken strips, hickory smoked, chicken fried steak or catfish. You dine family style, so you choose a chicken dish, and then you have side dishes for the table- mashed potatoes and gravy, salad, green beans, corn, and dinner rolls. Megan devoured the chicken strips, Gretchen loved the mashed potatoes, and Addy enjoyed the dinner rolls!

Once dinner was over, it was late so we headed home and straight to bed so we could be ready for Dallas day 2!